Transnistria, a Russian arrow in the heart of Europe

The separatist territory has no interest in joining Russia. However, the main political, economic and military decisions are made in Moscow. Transnistria has no facilities to support an attack on Odessa, Ukraine. The Moldovans are not meddling and are aiming for neutrality.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - In Transnistria, a Moldovan separatist strip on the border with Ukraine, there are two types of Russian armed forces: the so-called "peacekeepers", about 500 people deployed alongside Moldovan soldiers and observers from various countries, and the "limited group of troops" that protects Russian military depots in the village of Kolbasna. This is what Moldova's former defense minister Anatol Šalar tells Currentime.tv, according to which there are more than 2,200 soldiers in the second group.

The site also interviewed the former deputy premier of Transnistria for Integration in Moldova, Aleksandr Flenka, who explained how the disputed territory differs from the separatist republics of Donetsk and Lugansk in the Donbass, and why Russia has no interest in reuniting this territory with itself. This is firstly because of the lack of a common border with Russia, and secondly because the Tiraspol leadership has long since achieved its goals, well before the war in Ukraine: "They already have free gas supplies from Russia, and a flourishing smuggling trade in all directions."

Russian gas is used to produce energy to be sold "in black" to Moldova, which has been earning good money in dollars for 30 years, and there is no interest in integration with Russia, nor in international recognition of the republic, which would imply obligations and controls of all kinds. No intention either of triggering an armed conflict with Ukraine.

When asked about the actual independence of the Transnistrian leadership from Moscow, Flenka explains that "in daily decisions and ordinary administration there is enough freedom; of course the dependence is felt at the political, economic and military level". Otherwise, Flenka adds, the so-called president Vadim Krasnoselskij and the so-called foreign minister Vitalij Ignatev, along with a large caste of officials, "live quietly, being in possession of both Russian and Ukrainian passports, and many also have Moldovan ones."

The only fact in common with the Donbass is the creation of the separatist republic, which took place with the support of Russia according to a classic pattern, also seen in Abkhazia and South Ossetia with respect to Georgia, but each of these territories has its own particular history.

Moscow's lever of control remains the gas supply, which in these days is closing for several countries, and could also affect Transnistria if the shipment to Moldova is suspended, from which the separatist territory illegally removes the quota of its interest. On the other hand, if they were left without gas, the inhabitants of Transnistria would be even less inclined to fight for the Russians.

Actually, the Russians also pay the pensions of Transnistrian citizens, which are provided by the Moscow municipality together with other social benefits. In any case, a Russian attack on Odessa from the West would be economically untenable for the facilities in Tiraspol, which has military technology dating back to the Soviet period, and Russia cannot transport anything without going through Ukraine or Moldova. "There are 20,000 tons of military stockpiles in the Russian depots anyway, and even if half of them worked, it would still be a significant threat," Flenka notes, "but it would not be easy to get this arsenal back on track."

In Transnistria there is also a military airport, maintained for 30 years at a minimum level of efficiency, where even landing at night is impossible, yet in recent days night explosions have been heard there.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu has indicated Tiraspol airport as a high-risk military target, but Chisinau does not have the strength to impose anything, and will continue to maintain its neutrality by working through diplomatic channels in all senses: with Romania, the European Union, Ukraine and Russia itself.

Transnistria, perhaps the darkest corner of the entire continent, remains an arrow pointed at the heart of Europe.